A new corruption scandal rocked the European Parliament on Thursday after police carried out several raids in Belgium and Portugal, detaining multiple suspects as part of a probe into corruption masqueraded as lobbying.
The new investigation comes more than two years after the “Qatargate” scandal, in which a number of EU lawmakers were accused of being paid to promote the interests of Qatar and Morocco – something both countries have firmly denied.
None of those held for questioning on Thursday were EU lawmakers, a police source told Agence France-Presse.
Transparency campaigners, who have since accused EU lawmakers of resisting reform, called on the parliament to immediately investigate the latest claims.
Belgian newspaper Le Soir and investigative website Follow the Money (FTM) said the probe was linked to Chinese tech giant Huawei and its activities in Brussels since 2021.
Huawei did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment.